Calender for drawing foils and the like of synthetic material



Se t. 20, 1966 J. KLEINEWEFERS 3,273,199

CALENDER FOR DRAWING FOILS AND THE LIKE OF SYNTHETIC MATERIAL Filed May 4, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR FIG. 3 JAN KLEINEWEFERS Sept. 20, 1966 J. KLEINEWEFERS 3,273,199

CALENDER FOR DRAWING FOILS AND THE LIKE 0F SYNTHETIC MATERIAL Filed May 4, 1964 FIG. 2

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 H Um INVENTOE JAN KLEINEWEFERS ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,273,199 CALENDER FOR DRAWING FOILS AND THE LIKE 0F SYNTHETIC MATERIAL Jan Kleinewefers, Krefeld, Germany, assignor to Joh- Kleinewefers Siihne, Krefeld, Germany Filed May 4, 1964, Ser. No. 364,853 Claims priority, application Germany, May 7, 1963, K 49,675 Claims. '(Cl. 182) The present invention relates to a calender for drawing foils and the like, of synthetic materials.

With calenders having a plurality of rollers, especially four rollers, for drawing synthetic foils or the like, it is known to place either the last roller in the train of rollers passed over by the goods, or the last but-one roller in said roller train, at an angle in order to be able to influence the thickness of the foils, especially the marginal portions thereof, during the last stage of their forming process.

Experience has shown that the angular position of one roller only does not afford the possibility, in all instances, of drawing a proper foil. Depending on the width of the calender, an adjustment of the adjustable. roller along a horizontal plane may, at the journalling end of the roller, amount up to 25 millimeters. When adjusting the last roller of the roller train, the drawback is encountered that the goods'leave the calender along a plane which is at an angle to the plane through the adjacent end of the preceding roller. This means that the goods are unilaterally stretched when trying to wind them up straight. While, when angularly adjusting the preceding roller, the goods will leave the calender in a straight manner, two roller bites are affected by the angular adjustment of the preceding roller. This two-fold change in the two roller bites makes the drawing of the foil more diflicult inasmuch as two different pressures prevail in the said two bites. These different pressures result from the weights of the rollers, the difference in the adjustment of the bites, the different kneading magnitude, and from the fact that the direction of force of the third-last roller is affected by the preceding roller, when looking in the direction of the movement of the goods. Moreover, the kneaded material in the bite formed by the third and second-last rollers and the bite formed between the last-but-one and last roller respectively have different temperatures which in turn causes difliculties with regard to the drawing of a uniform foil, especially when the quality of the material being processed is not uniform throughout.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a calender of the above-mentioned general type which will overcome the drawbacks outlined above.

It is another object of this invention to provide a calender for drawing foils and the like of synthetic material, which will make it possible for the foil to leave the calender along a straight path and with a substantially uniform thickness.

Still another object of this invention consists in the provision of a calender as set forth in the preceding paragraph, which will make it possible to compensate for different bends of the rollers occurring as a result of different pressures in the respective bites.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly from the following specification in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 diagrammatically illustrates a calender according to the present invention;

FIGURE 2 more specifically illustrates a section through one of the stands for journalling the rollers of the calender and for adjusting the same.

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FIGURE 3 is a horizontal cross section through one of the adjustable rollers.

The present invention is characterized primarily in that of the roller train, which may have four rollers, the last two rollers are angularly adjustable along a horizontal plane.

Referring more specifically to the drawing, and FIG. 1 thereof in particular, this figure shows the flow of the material M being processed into a foil. As will be evident from FIG. 1, the material is introduced into the bite 1 between the first two rollers I and 11 having their axes of rotation located in a horizontal plane. The material then passes around a portion of the roller II into a bite 2 between the rollers II and HI the axes of rotation of which are located in a common vertical plane. The material then passes over one-half of roller III on the right-hand side thereof (with regard to FIG. 1) into the bite 3 between the two rollers III and IV. The axis of rotation of the roller IV is located in the same plane as the axes of the rollers III and II. Finally, the material passes around the roller IV over the left-hand side thereof and leaves the latter over a roller or beam B from where it may be passed to a storage place, or the like.

Referring now to FIG. 2, it will be noted that the various rollers I, II, III and IV are journalled in two roller stands 4. Each stand has a vertical chamber 5 with guiding surfaces 7 and 8 for guiding the vertical adjustment of rollers II and IV. Stand 4 is furthermore provided with a horizontal chamber 6 having guiding surfaces 10 for the horizontal adjustment of roller I. Roller III is not movable in vertical direction inasmuch as due to the heavy kneading operation, it is continuously pressed downwardly onto the sliding surfaces 9 forming a part of the frame portion defining the chamber 5. The rollers. are provided with studs or trunnions 11-14 respectively, journalled in roller bearings 21 to 24 the housings of which are equipped with the required sliding shoes S. The bearing housings of roller IV are movable in horizontal direction on a vertically movable bearing support 28. The rollers III and IV, therefore, may respectively be adjusted in opposite directions, as indicated by the arrows C and D or E and F.

The horizontal displacement of bearing housings 23 and 24 of rollers III and IV, as also shown in FIGURE 3, is effected by a fine adjusting mechanism 18 which is screwed onto the calender stand 4 and is provided with a driving motor 19 for roller Ill and with a driving motor 20 for roller IV. The drives of both adjusting motors may run synchronously by engagement with an intermediate gear 27. However, if desired, they may also individually carry out different adjustments, in which instance the intermediate gear 27 is disengaged. The adjusting movement is transmitted by spindles 25 and 26 respectively which engage corresponding nuts supported by the bearing housings 23 and 24. These nuts are carried by supporting members which are slidable relative to the housings 23 and 24 in corresponding slots provided therein.

The reference numerals 15, 16 and 17 respectively designate adjusting motors for adjusting the bite between the rollers I and II and the rollers 11 and III as well as the rollers III and IV. These motors are, for instance through a worm and worm wheel drive, connected to spindles 29, 30 and 31 respectively which are connected to the respective bearing housings. Connected to the respective worm wheel is a not (not shown), which meshes with the respective spindle so that rotation of the nut in one or the other direction results in a longitudinal movement of the spindle in one or the other direction and thereby in an adjustment of the adjacent bearing housing and the roller carried thereby.

According to a further development of the present invention, it is also possible angularly to adjust the first roller I, as shown in FIG. 1. In this instance, the angular adjustment must be effected along a vertical plane and makes it possible, already at the start of the kneading operation, to afiect the course of the kneading material. The adjusting mechanism may correspond fully to that for the rollers III and IV by the spindles 25 and 26 respectively except for being disposed vertically. Inasmuch as roller II is, under load, effective in two directions perpendicular to each other, it is necessary fixedly to arrange the said roller II. In other words, roller II cannot be angularly adjusted.

As will be evident from the above, the present invention makes it possible to compensate for different roller bends and, more specifically, to compensate for each roller bend individually by corresponding angular adjustment of the respective rollers. Due to the fact that in addition to roller III, also roller IV may be angularly adjusted, it is possible additionally to influence the foil web as to uniform thickness.

It is, of course, to be understood that the present invention is,'by no means, limited to the particular construction shown in the drawings, but also comprises any modifications Within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a calender having a train of at least three rollers for drawing synthetic foils, in which material fed between the first two rollers in said train passes successively between said rollers until it leaves the last roller; means for supporting the last three rollers with their axes in parallel planes, and including means for angularly adjusting each of the last two rollers with their axes maintained in parallel planes, the means for supporting the roller next preceding the last two rollers maintaining its axis in a plane perpendicular to said parallel planes.

2. In a calender as claimed in claim 1, in which the axes of said rollers lie in vertically spaced, horizontal planes.

3. In a calender as claimed in claim 1, in which the means for angularly adjusting each of said last two rollers comprises individual adjusting means at each end of each roller for moving the corresponding end.

4. In a calender as claimed in claim 1, in which means are provided for adjusting said last roller and the roller next preceding the last two rollers toward and away from the next to last roller.

5. In a calender having a train of at least four rollers for drawing synthetic foils, in which material fed between the first rollers in said train passes successively between said rollers until it leaves the last roller; means for supporting the last three rollers with their axes in parallel, vertically spaced, horizontal planes, means for angularly adjusting each of the last two rollers with their axes maintained in parallel planes, the means for supporting the roller next preceding the last two rollers maintaining its axis in a vertical plane, a drawing-in roller arranged horizontally of said next preceding roller, supporting means maintaining the axis of said drawing-in roller in a vertical plane, means for angularly adjusting said drawing-in roller with its axis maintained in a parallel plane, means to adjust said last roller and the roller next preceding the last two rollers vertically, and means to adjust said drawing-in roller horizontally.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 418,045 12/ 1889 Mitchell 182 1,445,990 2/1923 Bourn 18-2 1,600,119 9/ 1926 Macklin.

2,180,046 1 1/ 1939 Gleisner. 2,277,313 3/ 1942 Fowler 182 2,525,744 10/ 1950 Willshaw 18--2 FOREIGN PATENTS 894,767 11/ 1953 Germany. 940,783 3/ 6 Germany.

WILLIAM J. STEPHENSON, Primary Examiner.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent Not 3,273,199 Septernber 20, 1966 Jan Kleinewefers It is hereby certified that error appears in the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

sheets 1 and 2, the lower right-hand Signed and sealed this 29th day of August 19670 L) Attest:

ERNEST W. SW'IDER Attesting Officer EDWARD J. BRENNER Commissioner of Patents 

1. IN A CALENDAR HAVING A TRAIN OF AT LEAST THREE ROLLERS FOR DRAWING SYNTHETIC FOILS, IN WHICH MATERIAL FED BETWEEN THE FIRST TWO ROLLERS IN SAID TRAIN PASSED SUCCESSIVELY BETWEEN SAID ROLLERS UNTIL IT LEAVES THE LAST ROLLER; MEANS FOR SUPPORTING THE LAST THREE ROLLERS WITH THEIR AXES IN PARALLEL PLANES, AND INCLUDIING MEANS FOR ANGULARLY ADJUSTING EACH OF THE LAST TWO ROLLERS WITH THEIR AXES MAINTAINED IN PARALLEL PLANES, THE MEANS FOR SUPPORTING THE ROLLER NEXT PRECEDING THE LAST TWO ROLLERS MAINTAINING ITS AXES IN A PLANE PERPENDICULAR TO SAID PARALLEL PLANES. 